One Cut Two Lives (Part Three)
“Report! The scouts have reported that the poisoned soldiers from the Gu family’s army have already been cured and are currently recovering!”
When the report reached Western Kun’s army camp, regardless of whether it was the Liu family’s army that had suffered massive casualties or the Wang family’s army that had just arrived, everyone was displeased with Kun WuShang.
They initially thought that he had inherited the knowledge of Immortals Valley and reached the peak of poison techniques. The Gu family’s army lost tens of thousands of troops, and this battle was sure to be a victory.
Who knew that at the most critical moment, he would suddenly fall apart and watch the chance to strike pass them by.
Now, everything was just great. The Gu family’s army had found a way to treat the poison, and by the time that they regained their morale, it would be even harder to take Zhu Guan.
The main tent remained closed for five days, with Kun WuShang remaining completely unseen during this time. None of the guards stationed outside the tent gave face to anyone.
The armies’ generals almost started to wonder whether or not Kun WuShang was still at the camp.
He managed to kill tens of thousands of the Gu family’s army’s soldiers without losing a single man. The morale that he had built up with his contributions was now unbelievably low.
Unfortunately, he could not allow anyone to know the reason for his disappearance.
It was likely that there was someone from the crown prince’s camp keeping an eye on things. If he found out that he had been poisoned, he would definitely take the chance to act against him.
At best, morale would be lost, while in the worst-case scenario, he would fall just short of success despite the atrocities that he had committed.
He could not give anyone an opening. He had no choice but to isolate himself inside the main tent, flipping through medical texts and inspecting the medicine bottle that Yu Fu had given him to try and find a way to cure the poison.
It was only on the fifth day that he finally made some progress. After taking the medicine that he had made to treat the poison, he went outside to breathe in some fresh air.
It had been raining too heavily during the previous days, so he felt a little hot under the morning sun.
He removed his outer layer and carried it in his hand. When he arrived at the granary, he saw two soldiers laying on the ground. One of the soldiers heard his footsteps and opened an eye before quickly closing it and going back to sleep.
Kun WuShang looked down at himself. Having removed his outer robe, the inner clothes were white, closely resembling the clothes that the other soldiers wore. In his sleepiness, that soldier must have just looked at his clothes and not recognized him.
The head general had disappeared, and the lower generals’ hearts were filled with frustration. With the lack of supervision, the soldiers were happy to slack off.
Kun WuShang sneered and walked toward the two soldiers.
Reaching out with his foot, he kicked up the sword that was resting next to the soldier and quickly caught it in his hand.
Whoosh-
The familiar sound of a sword being drawn finally woke the two sleeping soldiers from their dreams.
“What are you doing… Your Highness the seventh prince?”
The two were scared for their lives and immediately stood up. With their heads bowed and hands cupped, they pleaded, “Your Highness, please forgive us. This subordinate didn’t see that it was Your Highness and thought that…”
Kun WuShang smiled deviously, “You thought that it was a normal soldier walking past, so you could continue sleeping while on guard. Is that right?”
The soldier quickly looked up and saw that the smile on his face was far from genuine. His eyes were filled with anger.
The two dropped to their knees in fear, “Your Highness the seventh prince, please spare our lives. Your Highness, please spare us!”
Kun WuShang held the steel sword and tapped the blade. The blade rang out with a clear sound, “It’s a good sword.”
The two did not understand what he meant, as they remained kneeling on the ground, not daring to respond.
Kun WuShang spoke condescendingly, “According to our Western Kun’s military’s rules, what is the punishment that should be given to soldiers that neglect their duties while standing guard?”
The two soldiers kowtowed and begged for forgiveness, “Your Highness, please spare us! It wasn’t just us. Because you suddenly retreated the soldiers, even the other generals have been constantly complaining! It wasn’t just the us subordinates who have been slacking off!”
The other soldier also spoke up: “That’s right, Your Highness! Look at the sentry behind you. It’s the same for everyone. it’s not just us subordinates!”
They understood very clearly that based on military rules that Kun WuShang had referenced, sleeping while on guard duty was a crime punishable by death.
They were even more certain that there was an unwritten norm that said the majority should not be blamed. That was why they decided to implicate the sentries that were also slacking off like them. They were trying to make Kun WuShang place less blame on them.
Speaking of, this entire situation should be blamed on him, the head general. It was no wonder the soldiers were so lax.
The sentries stationed nearby that had heard the commotion started to gather. As more and more people started to gather, the other generals quickly noticed the commotion and rushed over.
One of the generals rubbed their eyes, wondering if their vision had become blurry, “Your Highness the seventh prince? You’ve abandoned the tent? No, this subordinate means to say that you’ve finally come out from the main tent.”
Abandoning the tent was something that they had been joking about amongst themselves for the past few days. They all knew that Kun WuShang was a disciple of Immortals Valley. They knew that the practitioners in the valley practiced something known as closed-door cultivation, thus they would privately say that Kun WuShang had been engaged in closed-door cultivation over the past five days.
Kun WuShang held the blade in his hands and shot a dangerous look in the direction of the lower-ranked general. This left the latter feeling weak at the knees.
The sword in Kun WuShang’s hands shone with a cold glint, and it looked as if it could land on that lower-ranked general’s neck at any moment.
The lower-ranked general that had spoken rudely could not help but retreat a few steps. In an instant, Kun WuShang raised the sword and slashed behind him, deftly cutting off the heads of the two kneeling sentries!
With a single slash, he cut off two heads.
The bystanders wore looks of horror. The other sentries that had slacked off on their duties dropped to their knees in fear, and the lower-ranked generals that had been watching the earlier situation with disdain were now trembling in fear.
It was fortunate that this slash had not landed on their necks.
Kun WuShang looked around at the kneeling soldiers before his gaze finally landed on the lower-ranked generals, “When I came out this morning, I saw these two soldiers sleeping outside the granary. It turns out that the rules have been changed while I was in ‘quarantine,’ and it’s now acceptable to lie down while on duty. Is that right?”
The lower-ranked general who had spoken rudely shrank back in fear and hastily responded with a smile: “No, of course not! These two soldiers were slacking off of their own accord. Just how important is guarding the granary, yet they actually slept outside while on duty! According to the military’s rules, they should have been executed. Your Highness has done nothing wrong!”
“Oh… It turns out that it was just these two soldiers who had been slacking off, and the rules haven’t changed.”
While Kun WuShang spoke, he looked at the soldiers kneeling on the ground around him. They were now kowtowing even deeper than before, and it looked as if they were presenting their necks for execution.
Fortunately, Kun WuShang had already lost interest in carrying out executions.
He tossed the bloodsoaked sword to the side and patted his hands to get rid of filth, “I did indeed only see the two of them, and I hope that it won’t happen again.”
The soldiers kneeling on the ground let out sighs of relief, while the lower-ranked generals exchanged hesitant glances.
Kun WuShang knew what they wanted to ask him, “Five days ago was the best time for us to launch an attack of Eastern Ling. Unfortunately, I was poisoned at that time.”
Everyone was shocked. Nobody expected that Kun WuShang’s self-isolation would be because he had been poisoned.
It was fortunate that he now had the spare energy to come out and wander around. He even decapitated two people, so it seemed that there were no major problems.
He continued: “At the time, I hid it from everyone because I did not have a way to treat the poison, and I feared that my health would disturb the army’s morale. Fortunately, I was finally able to come up with a cure for the poison. Going forward, we will be able to go on the offensive at any time.”
One of the lower-ranked generals said: “In any case, seventh prince spent many years learning in Immortals Valley, so what sort of ferocious poison would take Your Highness five days to find a cure to?”
Kun WuShang laughed and pointed across the camp in the direction of Zhu Mountain. Its lofty peaks reached into the skies, but the soldiers did not see anything aside from this.
What was the meaning behind pointing in that direction?
Kun WuShang said: “It’s not Zhu Mountain. It’s the Gu family’s military camp behind Zhu Mountain. Did you really think that normal military doctors would be able to cure one of Immortals Valley’s secret poisons?”
He slightly squinted his eyes, as a look of weariness that did not fit his age appeared on his face, “My little senior disciple has arrived.”
Gu HuaiJiang had adopted the girl who had inherited Immortals Valley’s knowledge, and he had engaged her to his own eldest son. From that moment on, Marquis Gu’s Manor and Immortals Valley were connected by marriage. This was something that they had heard when Kun WuShang had instructed them to block the path to Immortals Valley.
The little senior disciple that Kun WuShang had just mentioned was naturally Eastern Ling’s Princess ZhenJiang, also known as the future young madam of the Gu family’s army.
Some people did not understand and said: “Your Highness poisoned the Gu family’s army by relying on consecutive days of heavy rain to wash the poison down from a higher point, and a large amount of poison was washed into Eastern Ling. But during the past few days, it’s been sunny. When did your little senior disciple poison you?”
It would have been impossible for a little girl to sneak into Western Kun’s camp and poison Kun WuShang, right?
Kun WuShang’s expression immediately became complicated. After a moment of silence, he quietly said: “Because she is no longer the Yu Fu from when she was little, and I am no longer the me from when I was young…”
“What did Your Highness say?”
His voice was too quiet, and nobody could hear it. Kun WuShang regained his composure and returned to his usual expression.
“I said that all generals of fifth rank or higher are to go to the main tent immediately. If there is anyone who had not shown up after a stick of incense has finished burning, don’t blame this prince for being ruthless!”
One Cut Two Lives (Part Three)
“Report! The scouts have reported that the poisoned soldiers from the Gu family’s army have already been cured and are currently recovering!”
When the report reached Western Kun’s army camp, regardless of whether it was the Liu family’s army that had suffered massive casualties or the Wang family’s army that had just arrived, everyone was displeased with Kun WuShang.
They initially thought that he had inherited the knowledge of Immortals Valley and reached the peak of poison techniques. The Gu family’s army lost tens of thousands of troops, and this battle was sure to be a victory.
Who knew that at the most critical moment, he would suddenly fall apart and watch the chance to strike pass them by.
Now, everything was just great. The Gu family’s army had found a way to treat the poison, and by the time that they regained their morale, it would be even harder to take Zhu Guan.
The main tent remained closed for five days, with Kun WuShang remaining completely unseen during this time. None of the guards stationed outside the tent gave face to anyone.
The armies’ generals almost started to wonder whether or not Kun WuShang was still at the camp.
He managed to kill tens of thousands of the Gu family’s army’s soldiers without losing a single man. The morale that he had built up with his contributions was now unbelievably low.
Unfortunately, he could not allow anyone to know the reason for his disappearance.
It was likely that there was someone from the crown prince’s camp keeping an eye on things. If he found out that he had been poisoned, he would definitely take the chance to act against him.
At best, morale would be lost, while in the worst-case scenario, he would fall just short of success despite the atrocities that he had committed.
He could not give anyone an opening. He had no choice but to isolate himself inside the main tent, flipping through medical texts and inspecting the medicine bottle that Yu Fu had given him to try and find a way to cure the poison.
It was only on the fifth day that he finally made some progress. After taking the medicine that he had made to treat the poison, he went outside to breathe in some fresh air.
It had been raining too heavily during the previous days, so he felt a little hot under the morning sun.
He removed his outer layer and carried it in his hand. When he arrived at the granary, he saw two soldiers laying on the ground. One of the soldiers heard his footsteps and opened an eye before quickly closing it and going back to sleep.
Kun WuShang looked down at himself. Having removed his outer robe, the inner clothes were white, closely resembling the clothes that the other soldiers wore. In his sleepiness, that soldier must have just looked at his clothes and not recognized him.
The head general had disappeared, and the lower generals’ hearts were filled with frustration. With the lack of supervision, the soldiers were happy to slack off.
Kun WuShang sneered and walked toward the two soldiers.
Reaching out with his foot, he kicked up the sword that was resting next to the soldier and quickly caught it in his hand.
Whoosh-
The familiar sound of a sword being drawn finally woke the two sleeping soldiers from their dreams.
“What are you doing… Your Highness the seventh prince?”
The two were scared for their lives and immediately stood up. With their heads bowed and hands cupped, they pleaded, “Your Highness, please forgive us. This subordinate didn’t see that it was Your Highness and thought that…”
Kun WuShang smiled deviously, “You thought that it was a normal soldier walking past, so you could continue sleeping while on guard. Is that right?”
The soldier quickly looked up and saw that the smile on his face was far from genuine. His eyes were filled with anger.
The two dropped to their knees in fear, “Your Highness the seventh prince, please spare our lives. Your Highness, please spare us!”
Kun WuShang held the steel sword and tapped the blade. The blade rang out with a clear sound, “It’s a good sword.”
The two did not understand what he meant, as they remained kneeling on the ground, not daring to respond.
Kun WuShang spoke condescendingly, “According to our Western Kun’s military’s rules, what is the punishment that should be given to soldiers that neglect their duties while standing guard?”
The two soldiers kowtowed and begged for forgiveness, “Your Highness, please spare us! It wasn’t just us. Because you suddenly retreated the soldiers, even the other generals have been constantly complaining! It wasn’t just the us subordinates who have been slacking off!”
The other soldier also spoke up: “That’s right, Your Highness! Look at the sentry behind you. It’s the same for everyone. it’s not just us subordinates!”
They understood very clearly that based on military rules that Kun WuShang had referenced, sleeping while on guard duty was a crime punishable by death.
They were even more certain that there was an unwritten norm that said the majority should not be blamed. That was why they decided to implicate the sentries that were also slacking off like them. They were trying to make Kun WuShang place less blame on them.
Speaking of, this entire situation should be blamed on him, the head general. It was no wonder the soldiers were so lax.
The sentries stationed nearby that had heard the commotion started to gather. As more and more people started to gather, the other generals quickly noticed the commotion and rushed over.
One of the generals rubbed their eyes, wondering if their vision had become blurry, “Your Highness the seventh prince? You’ve abandoned the tent? No, this subordinate means to say that you’ve finally come out from the main tent.”
Abandoning the tent was something that they had been joking about amongst themselves for the past few days. They all knew that Kun WuShang was a disciple of Immortals Valley. They knew that the practitioners in the valley practiced something known as closed-door cultivation, thus they would privately say that Kun WuShang had been engaged in closed-door cultivation over the past five days.
Kun WuShang held the blade in his hands and shot a dangerous look in the direction of the lower-ranked general. This left the latter feeling weak at the knees.
The sword in Kun WuShang’s hands shone with a cold glint, and it looked as if it could land on that lower-ranked general’s neck at any moment.
The lower-ranked general that had spoken rudely could not help but retreat a few steps. In an instant, Kun WuShang raised the sword and slashed behind him, deftly cutting off the heads of the two kneeling sentries!
With a single slash, he cut off two heads.
The bystanders wore looks of horror. The other sentries that had slacked off on their duties dropped to their knees in fear, and the lower-ranked generals that had been watching the earlier situation with disdain were now trembling in fear.
It was fortunate that this slash had not landed on their necks.
Kun WuShang looked around at the kneeling soldiers before his gaze finally landed on the lower-ranked generals, “When I came out this morning, I saw these two soldiers sleeping outside the granary. It turns out that the rules have been changed while I was in ‘quarantine,’ and it’s now acceptable to lie down while on duty. Is that right?”
The lower-ranked general who had spoken rudely shrank back in fear and hastily responded with a smile: “No, of course not! These two soldiers were slacking off of their own accord. Just how important is guarding the granary, yet they actually slept outside while on duty! According to the military’s rules, they should have been executed. Your Highness has done nothing wrong!”
“Oh… It turns out that it was just these two soldiers who had been slacking off, and the rules haven’t changed.”
While Kun WuShang spoke, he looked at the soldiers kneeling on the ground around him. They were now kowtowing even deeper than before, and it looked as if they were presenting their necks for execution.
Fortunately, Kun WuShang had already lost interest in carrying out executions.
He tossed the bloodsoaked sword to the side and patted his hands to get rid of filth, “I did indeed only see the two of them, and I hope that it won’t happen again.”
The soldiers kneeling on the ground let out sighs of relief, while the lower-ranked generals exchanged hesitant glances.
Kun WuShang knew what they wanted to ask him, “Five days ago was the best time for us to launch an attack of Eastern Ling. Unfortunately, I was poisoned at that time.”
Everyone was shocked. Nobody expected that Kun WuShang’s self-isolation would be because he had been poisoned.
It was fortunate that he now had the spare energy to come out and wander around. He even decapitated two people, so it seemed that there were no major problems.
He continued: “At the time, I hid it from everyone because I did not have a way to treat the poison, and I feared that my health would disturb the army’s morale. Fortunately, I was finally able to come up with a cure for the poison. Going forward, we will be able to go on the offensive at any time.”
One of the lower-ranked generals said: “In any case, seventh prince spent many years learning in Immortals Valley, so what sort of ferocious poison would take Your Highness five days to find a cure to?”
Kun WuShang laughed and pointed across the camp in the direction of Zhu Mountain. Its lofty peaks reached into the skies, but the soldiers did not see anything aside from this.
What was the meaning behind pointing in that direction?
Kun WuShang said: “It’s not Zhu Mountain. It’s the Gu family’s military camp behind Zhu Mountain. Did you really think that normal military doctors would be able to cure one of Immortals Valley’s secret poisons?”
He slightly squinted his eyes, as a look of weariness that did not fit his age appeared on his face, “My little senior disciple has arrived.”
Gu HuaiJiang had adopted the girl who had inherited Immortals Valley’s knowledge, and he had engaged her to his own eldest son. From that moment on, Marquis Gu’s Manor and Immortals Valley were connected by marriage. This was something that they had heard when Kun WuShang had instructed them to block the path to Immortals Valley.
The little senior disciple that Kun WuShang had just mentioned was naturally Eastern Ling’s Princess ZhenJiang, also known as the future young madam of the Gu family’s army.
Some people did not understand and said: “Your Highness poisoned the Gu family’s army by relying on consecutive days of heavy rain to wash the poison down from a higher point, and a large amount of poison was washed into Eastern Ling. But during the past few days, it’s been sunny. When did your little senior disciple poison you?”
It would have been impossible for a little girl to sneak into Western Kun’s camp and poison Kun WuShang, right?
Kun WuShang’s expression immediately became complicated. After a moment of silence, he quietly said: “Because she is no longer the Yu Fu from when she was little, and I am no longer the me from when I was young…”
“What did Your Highness say?”
His voice was too quiet, and nobody could hear it. Kun WuShang regained his composure and returned to his usual expression.
“I said that all generals of fifth rank or higher are to go to the main tent immediately. If there is anyone who had not shown up after a stick of incense has finished burning, don’t blame this prince for being ruthless!”
